School department applies for building repairs

Wednesday

Aug 29, 2007 at 12:01 AMAug 29, 2007 at 4:56 AM

Following a four-year moratorium on applications for state funding for school building repairs, Wakefield recently joined 162 other school districts in applying for much needed renovations at three of its schools: The Greenwood, the Galvin and the high school.

Gary Band

Following a four-year moratorium on applications for state funding for school building repairs, Wakefield recently joined 162 other school districts in applying for much needed renovations at three of its schools: The Greenwood, the Galvin and the high school.

Representatives from the Massachusetts School Building Authority made site visits to the Wakefield schools this week. A spokesperson said that the authority will likely determine what will be funded in the next few months and distribute funds by February or March 2008.

The work requested for the schools includes increased space to eliminate overcrowding and renovation of the heating system for all three schools, increased space for labs, performing arts and special education at the Galvin, and extensive renovation if not completely rebuilding the high school. Of the three, the Greenwood is the oldest at 110 years. The high school was built in the 1960s and renovated in the ‘70s. Costs for each are estimated at $15 million.

The authority, which has bankrolled nearly $5 billion in construction since 2004 and will use state sales tax revenue to finance another $2.5 billion in new projects over the next five years, now must prioritize the 422 statements of interest, which have been filed by 162 school districts.

“What we’re trying to do here is triage the neediest right away,” said Katherine Craven, executive director of the authority.

She said several measures will be used to determine which projects are funded this year, including immediate health or safety implications, severe overcrowding or projections of such overcrowding, effects facilities have on the quality of education, and project alternatives.

The authority has also hired information innovation consultants to review the methodology used to project student enrollment figures.

Once overseen by the department of education, through legislation passed in 2004, the MSBA is now an independent entity. According to press secretary Carrie Sullivan, the new agency will exercise more oversight and work more collaboratively with the schools to determine and remedy deficiencies.

She said one of the key differences between the old and new system involves the distribution of funds whereby districts once had to put up the money first and receive state funds sometimes a decade or two later.

“It is now a pay-as-you-build model,” Sullivan said. “Communities no longer have to front the state’s share of projects.”

She said this $2.5 billion over the next five years is the largest capital grant in the state, and that schools can thank the Legislature and State Treasurer Tim Cahill for the new structure of the school building authority.